The Outdoor School
UPDATES: Hiring! Now hiring Outdoor Education Instructors for the fall season (August 21st–November 17th, 2023)
Hiring:
Outdoor Education Instructor
Join our outdoor education team as an Instructor at The Outdoor School (TOS) and embark on a rewarding journey to make a lasting impact and engage students in the wonders of the wild. In this fun and educational setting, students in 5th - 12th grade engage with their natural environment through our experiential learning activities.
We offer over 30 different activities for schools to choose from, which means each day is different from the next. Instructors teach a diverse range of subjects including Geology, Teambuilding, Reptiles, High Ropes Course, Outdoor Survival, Water Quality, Kayaking, Art in Nature, Leadership Skills, and more!
There are also opportunities for professional growth here; Instructors participate in a 3-week training period that provides challenge course training, teambuilding facilitation skills, Red Cross First Aid/CPR Certification, Lifeguard Certification (optional), and the foundation for great friendships too.
Join our dedicated team in the beautiful Texas Hill Country, just about an hour away from Austin, and become a catalyst for inspiring curiosity, resilience, and a lifelong connection to nature. Previous experience in outdoor education, education, summer camp, or outdoor work may be helpful but is not specifically required.
Compensation includes housing, meals during program, and up to $375/week for new instructors with the option to work for hourly pay on the weekend ($15/hour for lifeguards, $14/hour for non-lifeguards)
The Fall season starts in mid-August and runs through mid-November, any questions can be directed to Personnel Director Amy Koch (Amy@outdoorschool.com)
Outdoor Education Program Coordinator
Advance your Outdoor Education career, develop your leadership tools, and learn transferrable professional skills as a Program Coordinator at The Outdoor School. A cohort of Program Coordinators (PCs) will work together closely with the support of our full-time directors to plan, schedule, and skillfully execute outdoor education programming for students 5th - 12th grade.
The PCs responsibilities include acting as the on-call director of the day, mentoring instructors, observing and evaluating teaching skills, liaising with school staff leading up to and during their visit, engineering a master schedule of staff and activities, and of course working outdoors with kids.
This opportunity will take your leadership journey to new heights in the beautiful Texas Hill Country, with direct waterfront access to Lake LBJ only about an hour away from Austin. Previous experience in outdoor education, education, summer camp, recreation, management, or leadership may be helpful but is not specifically required.
Program Coordinators will work two seasons at The Outdoor School with a break in between.PC’s start work July 31st with the fall season ending in mid-November. After the winter break, PC’s start work again in early January with work through the third week of May. Compensation includes housing, meals during program, and up to $425/week (plus the option to work on the weekend for additional pay).
Any questions can be directed to Personnel Director Amy Koch (Amy@outdoorschool.com)
Additional Information About The Outdoor School
The Place- Located on Lake LBJ in the heart of the beautiful Texas Hill Country, the property is far away enough from city lights to get beautiful views of the night sky, and just close enough to civilization to be 10 minutes away from local and chain restaurants, stores, and amenities. Over 80 acres of native trees, grasses and wildflowers cover the northern end of the property, which provides a habitat for raccoons, deer and other wildlife. Picturesque Lake LBJ, filled with fish and other aquatic life, forms the southern border. The site is 45 miles from Austin, 90 miles from San Antonio and approximately 240 miles from Dallas, Fort Worth and Houston.
The Purpose- TOS Instructors connect kids to the natural environment—a place where they can see, hear, touch, smell and even taste nature. Students learn about themselves, their natural environment and their peers while participating in fun and educational outdoor activities, facing challenges, overcoming fears, and sparking new ways to see the world. Students come from public, charter, and private schools—allowing Instructors to work with students coming from a wide range of cultural, philosophical, and socio-economic backgrounds.
The Program- As the vital link between nature and the classroom, The Outdoor School (TOS) is a residential outdoor education program that focuses on hands-on experiential education.
Programming focuses on the philosophy of Universal Respect and Challenge by Choice.
Universal Respect means everything should be treated with respect. All students, chaperones, guests, and staff are also expected to show respect for themselves, the environment, eachother,—and everything!
Challenge by Choice involves setting goals and reaching them using physical, mental
and social challenges along the way. Goals are often reavaluated and some times reset higher or lower. Everyone is encouraged to challenge themselves in order to meet and exceed their goals, but are never forced to go beyond their limits!
The Recipe for Success- Applicants who thrive here tend to be playful, responsible, adventurous, flexible, perseverant, fun loving, curious, hardworking, eager for personal growth, and enjoy working with kids in the outdoors. A strong sense of community is one of the welcomed byproducts of what we do here, so frequent skillfull and respectful communication with peers is important.
Social Media
Contact
Amy Koch (she/her), Personnel Director
512-537-3631
Staff testimonials- What did I love about my time here?
“How much I’ve grown through this job.”
“How intrinsically rewarding everything has been.”
“Seeing a whole new world in Texas. “
“Meeting the fantastic people here.”
Reasons TOS is a great place to work:
A weekly stipend up to $375/week and the option to work for hourly pay on the weekend ($15/hour for lifeguards, $14/hour for non-lifeguards)
Free housing, utilities, and WiFi access. All staff members should expect to have at least one roommate.
The dining hall team provides meals to everyone so long as there are guests on property, typically Monday lunch through Sunday breakfast
Pro deals when available
Full use of camp amenities (including washer/dryer, staff lounge, kitchen, and many, many cool toys to play with)
Lifeguard and CPR/first aid certification offered
A central location to explore Texas’s underused State and National Parks as well as major Texas cities: Austin, San Antonio, Houston, Dallas and Fort Worth
Watching yourself grow as you help the program grow
Will you thrive at TOS?
You must simply love working with kids, have a desire and ability to teach kids, enjoy working in the outdoors (in all kinds of weather!), are fun loving, adventurous and hardworking, willing to go with the flow, a person of flexibility, excitement, patience, fun, and stamina, possess an ability to laugh at yourself, and open to feedback and growth. The Outdoor School has the ability to unite a group of strangers into a team that impacts hundreds of students each semester.